John Hamilton (gangster)

John Hamilton
Mugshot of John "Red" Hamilton.
Born	1899 Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, Canada
Died	26 April 1934 Aurora, Illinois, United States
Nationality	Canadian
Other names	Red Three-Finger Jack
Known for	Criminal partner of John Dillinger.

John "Red" Hamilton (1899 – April 26, 1934) was a Canadian criminal and bank robber active in the early 20th century, most notably as an associate of John Dillinger. He is best known for his lingering death and secret burial after being mortally wounded during a robbery.

Little is known of John Hamilton's life prior to his criminal career. He was born to an Irish-Canadian father from Essex County, Ontario and a German-American woman from New York. Hamilton was nicknamed "Three-Finger Jack," having lost two of his right fingers in a sledding accident when he was young. On March 16, 1927, he was convicted of the robbery of a gas station in St. Joseph, Indiana, and sentenced to 25 years. While incarcerated in Indiana State Prison in Michigan City, Hamilton befriended a number of prominent bank robbers, such as John Dillinger, Russell Clark, Charles Makley, Harry Pierpont and Homer Van Meter.

Dillinger was paroled in May 1933, but swore to liberate his friends, and had handguns smuggled into Hamilton, Makley, Pierpont, Clark and several other convicts. On September 26, 1933, a total of ten armed men, including Hamilton, escaped from the main gate of Indiana State Prison.

Soon afterwards the gang learned that Dillinger had in the meantime been arrested for bank robbery and was being detained at the Allen County Jail in Lima, Ohio. Determined to free Dillinger, the gang needed cash to fund an escape. On October 3, 1933, the gang robbed the First National Bank of St. Mary's, Ohio, escaping with $14,000.